Dreaming Old Dreams
by SaiyuriKitsune
Summary: When you've lived a life as dark and bloody as Vegita has, your dreams are never going to be pleasant. Rated: M for violence. Read this at your own risk.


_DISCLAIMER:_ _All characters are property of their respective owners and I have no part of that...unfortunately._

**Dreaming Old Dreams**

A/N: Thank you to Hollyberry, Gutterball, Demon, and Brian for all their help and fantabulous ideas. ~hugs~

Rated: **R** for violence, and briefly implied rape.  
><em><strong>Read this at your own risk.<br>**_Now, on with the horror show...

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

Dust sweeps through the barren, blood-splattered plain as the thunderheads grumble ominously in the slowly darkening red sky. The smell of burning flesh and smoke plague the air making it frighteningly hard to breathe. In the background, buildings crumble apart, falling on the thousands of lifeless corpses littering the earth. In the mist of all this sits a small five-year-old boy, calmly meditating in the lotus position and seemingly oblivious to the destruction around him.

Deep in the ruins of the city, a decayed hand shoots up from its rocky grave. Out of the dank street crawls a partially decomposed creature. Slowly, more dig their ways out of this urban cemetery.

Hearing a footstep, the child opens impossibly dark eyes to see a legion of vulgar stinking corpses surrounding him. Their eyeless sockets glare hateful murder; their bony claw-like fingers yearn to rip his baby-soft skin apart. They advance sluggishly, their hate seeping out like the black bile oozing from their decades-old wounds. The small prince heaves a tiny sigh and closes his eyes. Waiting...

- - - - -

Jerking awake in the dark, his heart jack-hammering in his chest, he scans the room instinctively. Climbing slowly out of bed, he saunters over to the window. The moon is heavy and full as he gazes out over the silvered landscape. The scenery is almost enough to take away the old bloodstains clotting his dreams for the moment.

Looking to his side, he breathes an inaudible sigh, relieved that his beautiful mate still lies slumbering peacefully. She should never know of the dark things that play in his dreams when sleep comes. As Vegita is staring at his mate, a flicker of movement catches his eye from the window. Peering out, he sees a monstrous Oozaru stomping West Capital, ki shooting out its mouth as it destroys the city in gleeful abandonment.

He cocks his head to the side and murmurs  
>"Hmmm...that's a bit odd."<br>Slinking back over to the bed, he climbs back in and nestles snugly against the warm bare skin of his mate and feels the hands of sleep pulling him down into darkness.

Eyes snap back open. He sits up abruptly, and a light bulb flips on in the back of his mind.  
>"What the FUCK?"<br>Throwing off the covers, he races to the window. Nothing there. Shaking his head and smacking his cheek a few times, he whispers.  
>"I must be dreaming..."<p>

He checks the window one last time to appease his shaken mind. There in all its were-ape glory stands the Oozaru grinning wickedly at him through the glass. In disbelief, he put his hands against the window pane only to feel it crumbling beneath his fingertips. The walls start to fall around him as the building seems to dissolve of its own accord. Horror-struck, he feels himself falling down with no chance to fly.

Falling...  
>down…<br>down…  
>Down into the mouth of that hideous creature.<p>

- - - - -

The child wakes up screaming. A female with long, spiky, reddish-black hair creeps quietly over to his bed. Though her face appears impassive, dark eyes smile at the baby. She picks him up crooning softly in a dead tongue.  
>"Hush, little prince, all is well. It was only a dream."<p>

At the sound of his mother's voice, the child quiets. The female holds him protectively against her chest, rumbling out a purr to soothe the prince back to sleep.  
>Suddenly, a familiar cackle breaks the peaceful air.<br>The Saiyan woman holding the little prince stands up and starts to back away from the new threat. A deafening crack smashes her skull into pieces. Blood falls on the prince's face as the woman drops him to the floor.

Falling  
>falling...<p>

The little prince opens his eyes. Blackness engulfs his vision until suddenly a spark of light brightens the room. Lifting his head from the stone floor, he sees the light showcasing an empty throne with the crest of Vegita-sei emblazoned on its black onyx surface. Standing up slowly he makes his way towards the shiny surface, hand outstretched. Just as his small fingers touch the cool stone surface, he hears a malicious chuckle from behind him. The very sound freezes the blood in his veins.

Dazed, the child turns to see the Monster of his nightmares. A powerful tail wraps around the child's throat lifting him off the ground in a stranglehold. Vainly, his fingers grasp at the Monster's appendage as he is turned to stare into the face of his demon Master. The violet lips curl into a vicious smile causing the child's stomach to drop violently. Gently, the tail lowers him to the floor in front of this dreaded creature's feet. An androgynous voice lilts softly.

"Lick my feet little prince."

Fear sends an electric chill over the child's backbone and spreads panic to every nerve ending in his body. Thoughts of past punishments given for insubordination flit through his mind. He remembers having this horrid lizard hulking over him, violating him in ways no child should ever know exists, and hearing him whisper words of madness and hate into his ears between the labored pants. For thirty years, this creature ripped out his soul and spat on it, using anger and fear to forge another monster, made in the lizard's image and fit only to rule with an iron fist drenched in blood and filled with hate.

It was too much.

"NO! I will NEVER bow to YOU again! I will never bow to ANYONE EVER AGAIN!"

The creature trills a high pitched laugh and sneers menacingly.  
>"Well then, oh gracious prince, will you kill me now or wait until later?"<p>

Powering up, the child morphs into a man wearing broken armor and impotent pride.  
>Raging out of control, he hurtles toward the lizard, the epitome of all his madness, his hatred; the one being in the universe he could blame for the ruin of his life. The white doll-like face smiles evilly and bats the young prince away like a cat toy.<p>

He collides heavily with the onyx throne, the impact shattering it into splinters. Lying there among the ruins of his heritage, Vegita hears a familiar cackle. Sitting up, he watches his Master change. Some of the lizard's white skin turns darker and more bronze colored, while other parts transform into an orange fabric. His smooth head elongates and the top warps into soft black hair. The eyes turn from hateful red to laughing black. The prominent sneering face melts into that of a laughing fool. The new creature tilts its head at the young prince and grins genially.

"So Vegita…Kill me now or later?"

Snarling in rage, the prince stands up from the fragments of his birthright and charges mindlessly causing the laughing face to still ominously. The fool's dark hair flames into a brilliant gold, and the his powerful aura wards off the prince's foolhardy attack.

Stunned into stillness by the sudden transformation, the prince can only look on in wretched jealously as this…this…stupid third-class soldier acquires in only a few moments all that Vegita had strived for in his entire lifetime. This fool had achieved it first. This fool had destroyed his evil Master single-handedly. This fool who didn't even know what a true Saiyan was and didn't even care. HE had achieved it and not the prince. The prince of all Saiyans. The prince of only three subjects, a poor kingdom indeed.

Demons from the past and present suddenly rush in from the corners of his mind, darkness colliding with light. Images of his evil Master along with visions of innocent eyes pleading for mercy, and golden-haired heroes who were not him all collide with screams of fear and whispers of heady madness causing a crescendo that could not be ignored. But above it all there was the sound of laughter. A cruel sound meant only to torment. With a panicked start, he realizes that the laughter is originating from his own throat.

- - - - -

Jerking awake in the dark, his heart jack-hammering in his chest, he scans the room instinctively. A small sound comes from the side of the bed. Vegita automatically raises a ki-glowing fist to strike down the intruder. Wide blue eyes stare at him innocently and, to his surprise, without any fear in them.  
>"Daddy?"<br>Vegita takes a deep breath and closes his eyes, almost frightened at how close he had come to injuring his only child.  
>"What Trunks?"<br>"I had a bad dream."  
>Opening his eyes and staring at his child, once again he is reminded of how amazing it was that he should have such a child. A child untouched by anger, fear, or death.<br>"Hush brat, it was only a dream." Despite the harshness of the words, the voice is a soothing growl. He knows what it is like to despise the demons lurking just behind the eyelids… waiting.  
>"Daddy?"<br>"What?" Slightly rougher this time.  
>"Kill me now or later?"<p>

- - - - -

The morning dawns clear and bright as Bulma stumbles blearily into the kitchen. Shoving the filter and coffee into the machine, she sighs gratefully when its aroma finally beings to flavor the air. After a few moments, she pours herself a cup, drinking deeply from the bitter but addictive liquid. Hearing footsteps behind her, she turns around, surprised that he hasn't made the effort to startle her as usual. Pouring a second cup, she offers it to him.  
>"Sleep well?"<br>A grunt.  
>She smiles softly as he accepts her offering.<br>"Any dreams?"  
>This is a slight pause as his onyx eyes stare emotionlessly into hers.<br>"No."

A/N: If you thought the wording of this fic sounded strange, here's why. I wanted it in present tense to give the reader more of a feeling of being caught up in a dream with no escape. If it worked (or didn't work) let me know…this is the first time I've ever tried it so comments would be appreciated.

Thanx,

Fyrechylde/Kitauri


End file.
